514 SOUTH EASTERN EUROPE
For hotels and restaurants in this region see p524 and p525
Old Town 1
Baščaršija
Baščaršija. Map E2.
A labyrinth of cobbled streets,
the Old Town is known as
Baščaršija after its main mar-
ket, which has been a trading
place since the 16th century.
In the centre of the market
stands the Moorish-style Sebilj
Fountain, built in 1753 on the
orders of Mehmed Paša
Kukavica, governor of Bosnia
and patron of fine architecture.
Reminiscent of an Arabian
souk, the market’s narrow
streets, lined with small shops,
offer an intriguing choice of
authentic souvenirs. Local cui-
sine can be sampled in any of
the kebab shops and Turkish-
style coffee houses as well as
at the Morica Han (see p525),
an ancient Ottoman inn with
a shaded courtyard.
The atmospheric Old Town market lined with old buildings and shops
Opened in 1896, the building
was originally designed to
resemble a grand palace,
featuring elaborate arched
windows, a deco rative
rooftop crenella tion and a
first floor balcony. The
Czech architect Alexander
Wittek, respon sible for the
building’s con struction,
visited Cairo for inspiration
but com mitted suicide
before its completion.
Although its magnificent
Moorish façade survived
the war relatively unscathed,
the interior, which housed
the National Library, was
com pletely gutted by fire
during shelling in August- The library’s irre place-
able repository of Bosnian
written culture was almost
completely destroyed.
Archangel Michael
and Gabriel
Orthodox Church
and Museum 3
Stara pravoslavna crkva
i muzejMula Mustafe Bašeskije 59. Map E2.
# 8am–5pm daily. & =
http://www.staracrkva.orgBuilt below ground level and
hidden behind stone walls, the
Archangel Michael and Gabriel
Orthodox Church is thought to
rest on the found ations of a
5th-century church. However,
its current appearance dates
back to 1734.
The cramped interior is
sup ported by wooden col-
umns and dominated by a
wonder ful gilt iconostasis.
Intricately carved, it featur es
colourful 17th-century icons
by local master painters as
well as others added in 1734.
Religious artworks by 19th-
century artists adorn the walls.
The neighbouring museum,
opened in 1890, is one of
Bosnia’s oldest, and displays
the church’s treasures in
smartly renovated surround-
ings. Among the exhibits are
17th-century gold- and silver-
plated icons by Russian, Greek
and Cretan master painters,
along with a rare copy of the
Sarajevo Nomocanon (a book
of church and secular laws)
and valuable churchware.Entrance to the Orthodox Church
and Museum, marked by an iconNational Library 2
Nacionalna biblioteka
Obala Kulina Bana. Map F2.
One of the city’s most
striking works of architec ture,
the building that once served
as Sarajevo’s Town Hall
became the National Library
after World War II. This
impressive structure is one of
the few edifices in the capital
that has yet to be restored
following the Bosnian War.